Category: Bullpens

“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.” ~ Napoleon Hill Back Leg Throwing What is back leg throwing you ask? Actually, I just made it up just before writing this – lol. I’m just kidding but in all seriousness it’s a very important concept to understand. I’m not going to get…

Improving pitching mechanics so that needed adjustments stick is challenging. Many pitchers, although they want to make changes in their mechanics and have good intentions, find that the improvements they hoped to make do not stick. So they revert back to their old way. This is very common and probably occurs more often than not…

Another episode of The Pitching Factor and today’s issue is about “Where’s the oomph?” What do you mean oomph? Well, a lot of pitchers out there don’t understand that if they want to throw the ball with maximum velocity, they have to put more oomph into it. In other words, many pitchers say, well, you…

Another issue of the Pitching Factor is here and today I want to talk about how to prepare for a game. I got a call from a father of a 10 year old pitcher. The boy had walked four to five hitters over his last two games and the father was concerned. He wanted to…

Most parents and pitchers are not aware that pitchers can systematically train themselves to develop high velocity pitching mechanics. However, in order to develop high velocity pitching mechanics pitchers first have to learn which mechanical faults need to be eliminated if pitching mechanics are to be improved. Learn To Recognize The Common Faults That Interfere…

If pitchers want to improve their pitching mechanics and maintain their pitching speed all during the baseball season then a mound pitching workout routine is the most sensible way to achieve that. Not flat ground throwing or long toss as suggested by most pitching coaches today. The current research that was released in Jan 2011,…

Are you looking to improve pitching velocity and command while improving overall performance? There are a few key factors to remember to maximize your pitching command. I got this question from a client, who brought his son for lesson a couple of years ago: “Hi Dick. What are the best ways to work on fastball,…

I watched Diamondbacks Trevor Bauer struggle yesterday while pitching his 4th start against the Reds in Cincinnati on a very hot day. However, his results were very poor. Absolutely no command of any of his pitches. He went 3 innings, only gave up 1 hit (3 run homer), 5 BBs and 4 Ks. A total…

My last three blog posts have been about Diamondbacks 2011 first round pick, Trevor Bauer, who uses what most would describe as an extreme pre-game routine. It appears that Trevor Bauer believes training and conditioning are the foundation of good pitching even though pitching is one of the most highly skilled activities in all of…

Did you watch Trevor Bauer’s home debut last night against the Padres? It sure started out good. He struck out the side in the first, but after that is was all down hill. Final stats: 3 1/3 innings, 6 hits, 7 runs, 6 earned, 4 BB’s, 4 K’s, 1 hr – 80 pitches thrown, 45…

When I woke up on Sunday morning, April 22nd, I still wasn’t sure if I had been dreaming or not. Ryan and I just returned after a long flight back from Boston and Fenway Park’s 100th Anniversary celebration. There are a few days in your life that stick out far and above all others. Being…

One thing I get asked about a lot about pitching improvement is how to improve a pitcher’s ball control. We always say that once we help you improve your velocity, your ball control will also improve and your risk of injury goes down. Why is this? Ball Control is a Product of a Few Things…

How would you like to be able to detect an arm problem before it turns into a full blown shoulder or elbow arm injury? While I was interviewed by the Washington Post sports’ writer about Stephen Strasburg, I had mentioned to him that there is always the possibility that arm injuries have other causes besides…

In order for kids to become skilled as pitchers, they must learn how to pitch by doing more practice pitching than is currently believed. This is according to the most recent sports science research. Right now baseball coaches and instructors are recommending too many practice activities that do not transfer to helping a pitcher improve,…

There are two reasons why most pitchers never reach their full potential and end up injured, why most have poor pitching mechanics and why many never maximize their pitching velocity or develop command of all their pitches. The first reason is because they simply lack pitching skills. They do not practice enough mound pitching or throw enough practice…

Here are 11 ways that sports science believes pitchers could dramatically improve in 2009: Stop looking for magic ways to improve velocity – there are none. Stop wasting time on what has not “proven” to work to boost performance, such as long toss, pitching drills, weight training, short distance bullpens, throwing at less than game…

The question that is often asked today is – should weight training be a large factor for helping pitchers improve their velocity and for reducing the risk of injury? Conditioning pitchers is one of the most misunderstood subjects in sports today. The fact is that, until about 1990, there was not much emphasis on strength…

Every pitcher wants to reach his maximum velocity potential so he can throw harder, and still have great control. Both of these things are possible for a pitcher in Little League right through pro baseball, but only if you approach them using what has actually proven to work rather than what sounds good. Remember the…

Probably the most asked question today in pitching circles is how to improve pitching velocity. So, what is the typical recommendation? It goes like this: You improve pitching velocity by improving arm strength by doing lots of long toss or hit the weight room and get bigger and stronger. A much lesser number say improve…

Maybe the most asked question today about improving pitching performance is how to improve pitching velocity. Can pitching velocity be improved by doing long toss or throwing weighted balls or weight lifting? The answer is no. If you ask any high school or college coach or even a professional coach or scout you will get…

Bringing The Gap Between Fundamentals & Innovations In Pitching.

In 2004 we developed the first evidence-based pitching program based on sports science research, instead of common coaching beliefs. Through this research we've also learned video analysis is still the best and most accurate way to assess pitching mechanics. We not only show pitchers at all levels their faults and the adjustments, but work with there style in order to improve their velocity and control, all while reducing their risk of arm injuries. The true difference about our coaching methods are simple, our clients will truly feel the difference and that's the only true way towards improvement and development.